home for the holiday

It's been almost a year since my last post.  2017 was not my most favourite year.  In fact, I would classify it as challenging - extremely challenging - and not the fun kind of challenging.  Just challenging.  

I decided pretty early on in the year that the blog was not getting as much traffic as my Instagram account and, at this time, Instagram is a better fit for me.

The issue: entering craft challenges.

I don't mind breathing life back into the blog to use it as a platform for craft challenges.  It is fun to look around the corner to see what I have done over the years.  Kind of like a digital journal but a lot less messy.  In a fun way.

I am entering this home for the holiday card in Emerald Creek's Happy Holidays Anything Goes Challenge.

Keep getting messy!

the tan has faded, however, the memory will last forever

I suppose there is something ironic about disappearing for five months (to the day) after posting my excitement in reaching 100 blogosphere posts. Although contrary to good posting, you have to admit I have the sense of mystery down pat.

My first post back into the blogosphere world is really out of order in its creation.  I have been working on some new-to-me techniques and I wanted to share this particular journal page with you, and The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge team as my entry in challenge #32: Put a Stencil On It.

This was round two for this new-to-me technique of adding glaze to a page.  I did a trial run first, with a different stencil, in my practice/experimental journal.  And now I'm addicted. I might glaze everything in sight.  I might also use the Stencil Girl 17002 building stencil for every project.  It is crazy amazing gorgeous. It is almost a shame I covered it up; maybe next time I will create a page that highlights the stencil itself.  Oh mad stencil love.

As I mentioned this journal page isn't the first to be created in this journal.  It is the fourth page of my travel journal commemorating our trip to the Caribbean in 2014.  The photos are taken in Oranjestad, Aruba where the ocean was turquoise and the streets were lined with iguanas. Apparently, you may also choose to dine on iguana (not on an iguana as a table; the iguana is the dining bit), however, we decided to stick with swimming and eating on the cruise.

I have no great story to match this photo of a horse with a lampshade on its head (for some reason I think his story may be far more interesting than anything I can create).  I just loved the contrasted colours in this room.  There was so much dark ornate wood surrounded by white supporting structures which made this room really regal and beautiful.

Thank you to those who stayed on with me even though I took a lengthy blogging absence.  And thank you to my new friends on Instagram.  I appreciate the support.

Keep getting messy.

there are always flowers for those who want to see them - henri matisse

I feel like I should have better prepared to for this once in a lifetime moment .. it's my 100th post! .. how does one celebrate a 100th blog post milestone?  I think I'll get a green tea frappuccino.  Mmm.  Now you know my weakness.  Use it wisely grasshopper.

And I will also celebrate my 100th blog post by entering my not so perfect photo layout in the mid-August picture this! challenge.

This was a really fun layout to put together and I had tremendous inspiration watching donna downey's design team create gorgeous art pieces with her new stencils.  

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  I first chose the photo for this layout.  Yes, it is a photo of me around the age of 2 or 3 taking time to enjoy life and smell the flowers even though those flowers were not, um, authentic.  A few years ago I "borrowed" a bunch of my mom's photo albums as I readied myself for a milestone birthday (40) and came across this great shot.  Yes, it is blown out.  Yes, the flower makes me look like I have a horn on my nose (thank you monkey muse for pointing that out).  And yes, the quality of the photo is terrible.  But it is, and has been, one of my favourite photos of all time.  I cannot explain.  It just is.

And, as I mentioned, based on this photo I pulled out donna downey's flowers in vase #1, applied some modeling paste and added some delicious creamy colour with gelatos.  The flowers turned out great.  The vase, not as much.  Here's a tip.  If you want crackle paste to crackle do not add acrylic paint to it until it dries and crackles.  And then do not add acrylic paint to it after it has dried and crackled.  Use something else.  

The photo may not be perfect.  The memory may be blurry.  The sentiment is the same.  Enjoy every moment and take time in life to get messy.

12 tags of 2016 - august

Here is tim holtz's august 2016 tag:

And here is my version:

I finished the tag by the second week of August and I thought about pulling out the sewing machine.  Many times.  But it never happened.  And then I thought about doodling on the stitches and I came to the conclusion that if it was not the real deal it shouldn't happen.  I also was not 100% certain that I wanted to fill every spot on the tag.  I can see you all shaking your head.  Yes.  I showed some restraint.  It's progress.

Here are some close-up photos of the top bird, middle bird (oi.  I'm not giving you the middle bird.  It is all about posturing and by coincidence he turned out a bit blurry) and bottom bird.

I just came back from a fabulous gelli plate class and pulled 35 amazing prints.  The plan is to share the prints with you, my blogosphere friends, over the next few weeks and journey the adventure as they turn into journal pages for a trip we took to the Caribbean a little while ago.

Keep getting messy!

ever tried. ever failed. no matter. try again. fail again. fail better - samuel beckett

Blogosphere friends, you will have noticed that I wasn't the successful picture this! challenge blog design team member this time.  Don't fret.  It wasn't my time and I will keep trying.

This was the moodboard that inspired me to design a layout filled with aqua and pink bubbles.  As you know, I love bubbles and will add bubbles and circles to everything if it wasn't just plain odd.

I adore Audrey's elegance and style and have been using photos of her in some of my layouts and journal pages.  I have been waiting to find the right inspiration to use this photo and design this layout.

I love using bead paste and see it appearing more often in my work.  And I love creating embossed inked backgrounds.  You'll see this technique in quite a few of my other recent projects.

I am submitting this layout in the august 1st picture this! challenge: moodboard.

i put my heart and my soul into my work and have lost my mind in the process - vincent van gogh

I'm entering the birthday card below in Sweet Stamps July's Anything Goes Challenge.

 

Have fun, keep crafting and get messy my blogosphere friends.

the traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see - gilbert k. chesterton

Participating in this month's tim holtz 12 tags of 2016.

This is mr. holtz's inspiration:

And here's my version:

I had so much fun making the july tag that I decided to make a second tag with a slight twist.  For the second tag I added gesso to the tag first and removed the distress stain (broken china, cracked pistachio, hickory smoke, stormy sky) through a stencil (carta bella vintage airplane).  I die cut the word travel (tim holtz thinlit die adventure words script) and added a piece of burlap behind the tag and the journal word world to the bottom front.  I watercolour-resisted the globe (tim holtz schoolhouse blueprint stamps), added some staples to the top and bottom of the watercolour piece and wrapped the tag in thick twine.  Through the twine I wove chain and attached let's get lost and pack your bags charms with thinner twine.

Have fun, keep crafting and get messy blogosphere friends.

picture this! challenge design team submission

Hey there blogosphere friends.  It's been a long while since I've been on a design team and I thought I would up my game and apply to be a part of the picture this! challenge crew.

I'm going to sneak peak my submission here today and if I'm one of the lucky selected design team members I will have the big reveal on August 1st.  Remember you saw the close-ups here first .. wish me luck!!

The picture this! challenge for the design team call is this very colourful mood board:

 

If you know me well, you would have guessed that I was immediately focused on those amazing giant pompoms in the image on the left and the coloured discs on the right.  Those colourful little dots became my focal point in the form of bubbles. 

Take a peak at the bubble splatter top right of Audrey's head.  That's bead paste medium mixed with finnabair silver mica powder through tim holtz's splatter stencil.  Crazy awesome result.  I'm hooked.

Come back on August 1st to see if I'm one of the lucky new design team members.  Even if it doesn't work out this time you have to come back to see the full layout which I'll post on August 1st.  It really was a fun one to put together.

Stay crafty.  See you soon.

you can't blame gravity for falling in love - albert einstein

As you can see although there is less media used to create this birthday card (it's pretty much all paper minus some stickles, marvy snow pen and gelly roll pens), the layers are quite typical of everythingshetouches.   

If you're new to the blog you will quickly learn that I have a mad love affair with gorjuss girls.  I can design a card around these little treasures all day long.

I coloured in gorjuss i love you little rabbit with coloured pencils.  I know what you're thinking .. coloured pencils? but it has such an amazing consistent blended texture! how on earth can this be coloured pencils?  Ah, but they are coloured pencils.  I use a blending solution to gain that amazing creamy blended texture.  Yes, this is now at the top of the top five colouring techniques (sorry watercolour; still love you loads but you're now a close second).

Here's a close up of little miss gorjuss i love you little rabbit and rabbit.

I'm entering this birthday card in three challenges:

1.  Craft Stamper Take It Make It Challenge: July Anything Goes!
2.  Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes 
3.  DL. ART July Linky Challenge: Anything Goes
  
 

hope is the only bee that makes honey without flowers - robert green ingersoll

I love using faber-castell gelatos to create a watercolour palette.  It's easy to get depth and subtle colour transitions when using rich and creamy gelatos.

I stamped tim holtz flower garden onto watercolour paper in white permanent ink and white embossed the images to give them definition.  I used watermelon, metallic melon and bubble gum gelatos to fill in each of the flowers.  The background is a boxed card set that I bought at michaels.  These boxed card and envelope sets (I'm sure you've seen them - huge boxes of cards and envelopes) really help out when you need to create a whole bunch of cards at once in a jiffy.  Especially when you're like me and love creating multi-layered cards but have a limited amount of time.

Here's a closer look at the watercoloured flowers.  There are a few ways to use gelatos to get different results; my favourite, hands down, is this technique: take your gelato, smash a bit of the tip onto your craft mat, dip your paintbrush into water and mix it with the gelato colour.  Like all watercolours, the more water you use the lighter the colour, the less water you use the darker the colour.  Try layering different colours onto an image and then go back (it doesn't need to be perfectly dry; gelatos on watercolour paper dries really quickly anyway - if you haven't used a ton of water) and add more colour with less water.  You'll find that the colour depth you can create is phenomenal.  And it's so much fun.

Get messy.  Have fun.  See you back here soon.